Chapter 1

Chapter 1

I was bound to a terminally ill transmigration system.

I woke up in the body of a real heiress who was universally hated.

Everyone in the house adored the fake daughter they had pampered for sixteen years.

My three older brothers sneered at me, terrified I would steal what belonged to her.

My biological parents tried everything to make it up to her, fearing my return would hurt her feelings.

They never once cared about how I felt.

They treated my desperate need for love as a threat and pure jealousy.

Later, I was on the brink of death.

Even later, my second brother found the diary I had hidden under my pillow.

And their entire world crumbled.

...

I was bound to a transmigration system with a terminal illness.

I took over the body of Haven Mercer, the real heiress brought back by the wealthy Mercer family six months ago.

On my very first day here, a plate of food was hurled straight at me.

Piping hot spicy curry dripped down my cheek onto my collarbone, and meatballs bounced across the floor.

It burned like hell.

I stared blankly at the teenage boy in front of me.

There wasn't a single flicker of emotion in my dark eyes.

The rest of the family froze in shock at his sudden outburst.

Mrs. Mercer gasped. "Tristan, what the hell are you doing!"

A flicker of regret flashed across Tristan's face, but when he opened his mouth, it was pure blame.

"It's her fault for moping around like a walking corpse every damn day! Gemma was talking to her, and she totally ignored her!"

Gemma looked instantly guilty and choked back a sob.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know this happened because of me..."

She looked at me with tearful, apologetic eyes.

"Tristan didn't mean it. Haven, can I apologize on his behalf?"

Tristan snapped immediately.

"Who the hell is she that you need to apologize to her? Gemma, stop caring about someone like that!"

I pulled my lips into a faint, mocking smile.

I really wanted to know what the original girl had ever meant to them.

Gemma sat surrounded by her three protective brothers, dressed in a pristine white designer dress with her hair flawlessly styled.

Meanwhile, I was stained in yellow curry, reeking of grease and leftovers that filled the room.

Gemma―the precious pearl of the family.

That title never should have belonged to her in the first place.

I completely ignored Gemma.

I picked up the last meatball resting on my lap and swallowed it down with the leftover sauce around my lips.

It didn't taste like the comfort food I remembered.

I stood up from my chair to leave.

"I'm full. I'll head up to my room now. Thank you."

As I turned, I met the worried gaze of Martha, the housekeeper, and offered her a small, reassuring smile.

The dining room fell into an awkward silence.

My biological parents sat there with sour expressions.

My eldest brother, Landon, spoke in a deep, chilling voice. "Tristan, you crossed the line this time. Haven didn't do anything wrong."

In my original world, I was already dead.

Late-stage stomach cancer killed me right when I turned eighteen.

I literally died of excruciating pain.

There wasn't a single soul by my side.

Aside from that single meatball just now, I hadn't eaten normal food in nearly three months.

Maybe the system took pity on me and brought me into this world.

This body had stomach cancer too.

However, it hadn't reached the absolute end stage yet.

The system told me the original girl had taken sleeping pills to end her life earlier today.

Her frequent abdominal agony and coughing up blood made her realize something was horribly wrong with her body.

Yet she was terrified that speaking up would inconvenience the Mercers.

She feared making her family despise her even more than they already did.

So, she chose to leave this world in silence.

What a foolish girl. With the Mercer family's immense wealth, she could have had a fighting chance with proper treatment.

This family was truly a sick joke.

Their biological daughter had been back for six months, and not one person noticed she was dying.

"Why was I brought here?" I asked internally.

She was a girl who shared my exact tragic fate.

Both of us grew up as orphans.

Both of us ended up with stomach cancer.

Maybe she was a little luckier than me.

At sixteen, her biological parents actually tracked her down and brought her home.

Or maybe she was far more miserable than I ever was.

She never received a single ounce of unconditional love before she had to turn into an angel.

The system fell dead silent.

"Did my arrival accelerate the symptoms in this body?"

Feeling the metallic tang of blood welling up in my throat, I questioned the system.

The system replied in a mechanical tone. "Yes. Just like your previous life, you might not survive past eighteen."

"Though, if you cooperate with medical treatment..."

I cut in flatly. "No treatment."

It didn't matter. I was going to die either way, and honestly, I had no desire to live.